Friday begins a special annual period in Buddhism called Ohigan –“the other shore gathering,” or enlightenment — when Buddhists in Japan go to their family’s graveyards to worship on behalf of their ancestors and relatives.

Most temples throughout Japan also hold Ohigan ceremonies during spring and autumnal equinoxes to express gratitude for being awakened to wisdom and compassion.

The Myoken-Ji Temple, home of the Nichiren (Japanese) Buddhist sangha of Texas, will hold special practices during the week of Ohigan, also called Higan. It’s a time for cultivating generosity, dana, as well as continuing in their practice, keeping Buddhist teaching and meditation.

“During this time we also dedicate merit from our practice to our ancestors for their ongoing happiness and progress toward enlightenment,” the temple’s site said.

Their generosity and prayers become even more intentional and meaningful as the holiday falls just a week after the devastating earthquake and tsunami hit Japan, killing more than 5,000 and leaving 8,000 reported missing, according to the AP.

As Buddhists from Japan and in Japan honor their ancestors, they will remember those who died suddenly in the recent disaster, now believed to be caught between this life and their next.

“Their is a situation called the bando, and in the shock of dying, it’s like tumbling into a vivid and violent dream. People don’t even know they have died,” said Anne Klien, a professor of Buddhism at Rice University (who I interviewed last Friday, the day the quake and tsunami hit). “One reaction… is to pray for them right now, that they may find their way.”

Buddhists connect with the departed, now bodiless minds, through prayer and meditation.

“Minds connect with minds–not the intellectual mind, but the mind-heart,” she said.